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PFM-100 Hydrazine Torch Flamethrower
Sometimes, the best ore is found within comets, but it's trapped within layers of ice. The industrial PFM-100 Hydrazine Torch Flamethrower uses liquid hydrazine to produce an intense flame, between 500 and 4000 degrees Celsius, which is projected on a surface, immolating the target and breaking it apart. Operation This hydrazine industrial torch can fry multiple enemies with a streaming blaze that extends several feet. Though it doesn't have the same long-distance range as other weapons, the Flamethrower is much more useful against small enemies and swarms in close quarters. Its primary fire doesn't fire projectiles like other weapons, but you still target the enemies' limbs for maximum effectiveness. The flamethrower's secondary fire shoots a small concentrated burst of flames that resemble a projectile, but is more like a small bomb than a weapons' round. When this weapon is upgraded, the flame changes from yellow to orange to blue, indicating the flame has increased in temperature. In Dead Space 2, the flamethrower's secondary fire is a lit canister that is fired at an enemy and will explode after a few seconds or upon contact. It then sets the enemy in flames, taking constant damage away. Advise to clear the canister's explosive proximity. Combat Tips * The Flamethrower has the fastest rate of ammo consumption while the primary fire button is held down, making it even quicker than the Pulse Rifle. Conserve fuel by firing the primary fire in short, controlled bursts when you're sure only some of the fire will miss your target. * Being hit by the flames can cause enemies to recoil briefly. The flames will briefly stick to enemies as well, inflicting additional damage over a period of time. * The alternative fire consumes 10 fuel rounds per shot, and the blaze lasts for a few seconds before subsiding. This attack is best used to set up a small defensive firewall against incoming Necromorphs, where the fire will damage them and soften them up for other attacks. * Take care not to step in the fire you produce, you will get damaged by your own flames. * The Flamethrower does not work in a vacuum, due to the lack of oxygen needed to sustain the flame. This is technically an error by EA, since in reality hydrazine - a hypergolic fuel - is typically used with a liquid oxidizer stored along with it, and can even burn without any oxidizer as a mono-propellant. Therefore, a hydrazine flamethrower could theoretically be made to work in a vacuum. (This error is corrected in Extraction.) This being said, you should probably switch to a different weapon when you're going through a vacuum in Dead Space 1. * An intense buildup of flames can cause a reduction in the game's framerate, so it is advisable to use this weapon with care on lower performance computers. * The Flamethrower is very effective against Brutes. Once burned with the Flamethrower, a Brute will back away from you and not attack until the fire goes out, buying time to hit it in a weak area with another weapon, or to use a Med/Stasis Pack. Alternatively, once the Brute falls and if you have a Flamerthrower with max DMG, you can finish it off with two to three alternate fire shots when used in conjunction with stasis. * Don't aim exclusively for the body of enemies with this gun. The Flamethrower is not a spray-and-pray weapon - although holding the trigger down can do a lot of damage in short order, it's also a major waste of scarce ammunition. Aim for the limbs with short, controlled puffs, and allow the burning effect to cause damage over time. Causing enough damage will cause the limbs to break off. * Although being hit by the flames will cause opponents to recoil, enemies are still capable of attacking you even while engulfed in flames. Make sure you have plenty of room to run around while waiting for the burn damage to take its toll. * If you have plenty of free time or a lot of patience, the flamethrower makes an excellent hit and run weapon. You can give a target a burst of flame and either keep your distance or go through a door they cannot enter. Repeat the process until all that is left is a smoldering pile of ashes. Be advised this only works when you know where your intended targets are coming from and that you're not in an area under quarantine. * In Extraction, the Flamethrower is one of the best crowd control weapons in the game. It can halt enemy movement and attacks, those in range, of course, deal moderate and lingering damage, is able to sweep over multiple enemies, and has a good rate of ammo conservation. Its Secondary Function can kill most enemies in two to three shots on Hard difficulty. Dead Space 2 * The flamethrower returns with with a new alternate fire: a lit canister that explodes after a few seconds or upon contact, setting enemies ablaze. This uses 25 units of fuel, and deals lethal damage to virtually all enemies caught in the explosive radius. Since this lights all of their limbs on fire, any surviving enemies will also quickly fall. * The flamethrower has three levels of damage: 4, 8, and 12. At 8 damage, the flamethrower becomes one of the deadliest and most ammo-efficient weapons in the game, stunning slashers for upwards of 2 seconds for only a few units of fuel and also killing them very quickly (even on Zealot difficulty) if multiple limbs are lit simultaneously. The stun effect provides precious time in which to focus on other enemies, find objects to use as Kinesis weapons, or to run up and melee the enemy to conserve ammo. * Be aware that the flamethrower cannot stop charging stalkers, nor is it effective against Infectors, who seem to shrug off the stun time which affects other Necromorphs. Additionally, the flamethrower (both primary and alt fire) seems to do reduced or inconsistent damage to Guardians, sometimes taking more than a hundred units of fuel before going down. Alternative weapons are recommended for these enemies. Trivia *The flame's temperature is between 400 to 5000 degrees Celsius (depending on its damage level). Most metals usually melt between 1000 to 2000 degrees Celsius. Advanced Necromorphs can even withstand such heat. *When damage is increase to its maximum the flame is blue instead of the usual reddish-orange. *The flamethrower's effectivness is greatly increased in Dead Space 2. Appearances * Dead Space * Dead Space: Extraction * ''Dead Space 2'' Gallery File:00036.jpg|As seen in DS1 TROP044.png|The "Live With The Hot Ones" achievement/trophy -2054278500.jpg|game render of the flamethrower Dead Space--flamethrower.jpg|Isaac attacking an Infector with the flamethrower dead_space_flamebooster.jpg|Close-up of the Flamethrower.